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2010 Prius With Low Engine Coolant, No Interior Heat - Should I Buy?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by jumpinjivinjoe, Oct 11, 2017.

  1. jumpinjivinjoe

    jumpinjivinjoe Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2017
    19
    24
    0
    Location:
    Kennewick, WA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Have an opportunity to buy another 2010 Prius for $3,850. It seems to run and drive great, however there are a few problems which concern me.

    Upon driving, the engine coolant overheating light turned on. Turns out that the engine coolant reservoir is out of coolant. Obviously it doesn't just evaporate, it must have leaked out somewhere. I could not identify where though. I would be concerned it might have a head gasket leak but it didn't lack performance like I would suspect with a head gasket issue.

    I also plugged in my TechStream and did a health check on got the following codes:

    P0037
    C2123
    C1241
    B1503

    What would cause the engine coolant to be so low?

    Might there be damage if he's been driving it with low coolant levels?

    Should I be concerned with the ECU codes?

    Should I go for it or look for a better opportunity?
     
    #1 jumpinjivinjoe, Oct 11, 2017
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2013
    16,470
    8,383
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Do NOT buy. If this thing has overheated, it most likely has a blown head gasket
     
    #2 JC91006, Oct 11, 2017
    Shane Burns, Aaron Vitolins, paprius4030 and 2 others like this.
  3. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,476
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    +1.

    There are plenty of Prius fish in the sea(y).
     
    #3 Raytheeagle, Oct 11, 2017
    amos, mjoo, m.wynn and 1 other person like this.
  4. Bill the Engineer

    Bill the Engineer Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2013
    1,044
    2,272
    467
    Location:
    At the beach in Delaware...
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    DO NOT BUY! Blown head gasket!
     
    #4 Bill the Engineer, Oct 11, 2017
    Aaron Vitolins, mjoo, m.wynn and 1 other person like this.
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,662
    38,207
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    How many miles on it, just curious.
     
    #5 Mendel Leisk, Oct 12, 2017
    mjoo, m.wynn and Raytheeagle like this.
  6. tankyuong

    tankyuong Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2012
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    Location:
    Central MO
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    II
    i bought one like that for 2k.ended up replacing engine
     
    #6 tankyuong, Oct 12, 2017
    m.wynn and mjoo like this.
  7. jumpinjivinjoe

    jumpinjivinjoe Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2017
    19
    24
    0
    Location:
    Kennewick, WA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Wow! I appreciate the advice! We decided against getting this Prius. I can deal with engine trouble codes, but overheating and no coolant is just too risky. It had 236,000 miles.

    Thank you everyone!
     
    #7 jumpinjivinjoe, Oct 12, 2017
    Aaron Vitolins and Mendel Leisk like this.
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